$699 i7-3630QM, 8GB DDR3-1600, GT 650M 2GB GDDR5. You're welcome.

In the market for a new gaming/multimedia/DCC laptop? Deals don't get much better than this but act fast because this is a limited-time offer.

Go here and sign up for a free Lenovo Barnes & Noble Gold account and log in with it. Only takes a minute and is required to get these insane deals.

Enjoy:



DISCLAIMER:
I am not a shill and am in no way affiliated with Lenovo. I just recently bought the Y500 in my sig and like it a lot so far so I want to point out this awesome deal

I posted it here instead of the Deals subforum because there is a lot more exposure here and it seems that most of the prospective buyers are looking for the same type of machine right now. Would appreciate it if mods didn't move this thread. Thanks

 

Damn. $780 for a Y500 with a 1080p screen as well.

 

That's a pretty damn good deal for the hardware. Though I think that it'd be better to have this in the Deals subforum.

 

Only problem is nobody checks that area. Most people who are looking for a new notebook come here and I think this is where it's most useful. And I'm almost certain this deal is gonna expire pretty soon because I've never seen it this cheap so if you forget to check the Deals area for a few days it'll be over.

 

Yeah, I get what you're saying. I've missed a few good Crucial M4 deals that way :/...

 

The only model I see listed for $699 is the Y400. The Y500 starts out at $779. Are these decent gaming laptops?

 

Yes the Y400 is cheaper but it doesn't come with the option of 1080p like the Y500 does. They are very capable mid-range gaming laptops, high-end if you get SLI which both models support. What games do you play?

 

How do you configure them for SLI? :hi2:

 

Lenovo doesn't yet sell pre-built SLI configurations directly so you'll have to purchase a second GPU and 170W AC adapter separately from their website. The 170W charger is mandatory because the stock 120W one doesn't supply enough power. The Y400 and Y500 have a special drive compartment called the Ultrabay that can optionally house a DVD or Blu-ray drive, auxiliary fan, another hard drive, or second GPU in SLI.



Newegg and Amazon do sell pre-built SLI configurations of the Y500 only and they include the 170W adapter but you are giving up the optical drive by going that route. And it may or may not be cheaper to just order them separately from Lenovo.com like I did.

 

I'm in CHAT with Lenovo and they are checking on the price. This deal smokes Amazon so it's better to buy now I suppose. Am I to believe that these Y500's will allow for future GPU upgrades, perhaps the 675m or 680m?

EDIT: confirmed no upgrade path for the GPU's. It does appear Amazon has the better deal for the SLI package. I'm not sure if the $93 upgrade to the 16GB SSD and 12GB of RAM is necessary.

 

Yeah don't even bother with the 16GB SSD cache. You'd be much better off getting a real mSATA SSD like the Crucial m4 and installing that yourself. The mSATA slot is easily accessible on this machine. That's what I plan on doing in the near future. And for gaming 8GB is plenty of RAM.

I still say the Lenovo deal is the best. Amazon's least expensive SLI configuration with i7 is $1025. It's identical spec-wise to the $779 one on Lenovo's website, just with the SLI GT 650M instead of a DVD drive. The 170W adapter and Ultrabay GPU are $68 and $195 respectively on Lenovo.com right now, but the GPU is overpriced since it is usually $117 (trust me).

So if you went through Lenovo Barnes & Noble Gold and bought the Y500 and 170W charger right now and the GPU later when it drops in price you'd be paying $964 ($779+$68+117) for the machine and a DVD drive instead of $1025 on Amazon sans DVD drive. I think the DVD drive is important because you never known when you might need an optical drive and you can't just fit any laptop optical drive inside the Ultrabay because it uses a proprietary mount.

Just my $0.02.

P.S. If you have any technical questions about the machine, I recommend staying away from Lenovo live chat because the amount of technical knowledge they have about their computers is deplorable and they often give misinformation. It's not like they personally own every single computer they sell so they can't tell you the BIOS version of a specific model or something. I recommend posting in the Lenovo IdeaPad subforum or searching/posting in this thread.

 

I appreciate the info. :hi2:

I went with the Amazon deal because there's no tax on the purchase. I rarely if ever use optical drives and I have an external DVD drive if I ever needed one. I find myself using thumb drives instead and I had a few bucks in Amazon credit so I paid $975 and i'll have it by Weds.

Based on your Lenovo comments hopefully they got it wrong about upgrading the GPU in the future. Based on all the reviews regarding this laptop it's a steal for the price due to it's performance.

Wow I just chatted with another Lenovo rep and he said the Y500 can accept newer GPU's when they become available.

Chat:
Yes, one more question. In the future is it possible to upgrade the Y500 GPU? Currently they take the GT 650m

.IS_Agent : Yes, you may purchase the removable video card for it anytime

You : I see but I was referring to future video cards. For example if the 675m is used in a future Y500 would it be possible to purchase a 675m and install it in my Y500?

IS_Agent : Yes, you may upgrade to a higher one in the future.

 

Ahh I see. Amazon charges tax in my state and I was able to get a discount on Lenovo.com for the accessories so I ordered from them. Have fun with your new toy!

Don't believe it. This goes back to what I said previously about how much the live agents know because this person doesn't have a clue about what he/she is talking about. It would be impossible for them to create an Ultrabay GTX 675M in the future because that is a 100W TDP GPU whereas the 650M is 35W-45W TDP and there is not enough power and cooling in the system to support such a hot and hungry card plus the 650M that is already in place. You can't just disable the 650M or remove it because it is soldered onto the mainboard not connected via standard MXM. There are probably a bunch of other software, hardware, and logistical reasons it wouldn't work so don't count on it.

Anyway, the GT 650M SLI combination is a little faster than a single GTX 675M when SLI is supported, so it's not like you're upgrading by going that route.

 

with second card? if nto how much more for second card?

 

$780 is for the machine with one GPU only. The 2nd GPU and the 170W charger are currently selling for $195 and $68 respectively:



Both are required for SLI but the GPU is usually on sale for $117 so it is overpriced right now but should drop back down soon. All prices are assuming you're going through Lenovo Barnes & Noble Gold not their regular site as those prices are higher across the board.

 

eh wasn't it 900 or a 1000 for duel gpu a week ago?

 

When? Lenovo.com doesn't sell SLI configurations, only Newegg and Amazon do. The $900 SLI config is for an i5 and 6GB RAM. All the SLI with i7 configs are over $1000. $1025 on Amazon is the cheapest I think.

 

oh so the last one was an i5...that would explain it nevermind.